Liveblog: Game 32 – The winning streak ends at five as Kings pot six

A spanking

Martin Jones became the second rookie goaltender to hang a goose egg on the Canadiens.

L.A.'s phenom made 30 stops. Jones was particularly brilliant during a first-period Canadiens power play, when the game was scoreless and he made seven saves.

Goals by Jordan Nolan and Anze Kopitar in the first period, then Alec Martinez and Tyler Toffoli 5:28 into the second drove Carey Price from the Canadiens pipes.

Peter Budaj took over and surrendered second-period goals to Jake Muzzin and Justin WIlliams.

Shots were 30-30 but it wasn't REMOTELY close.

Ho-hum

No scoring.

Building half-empty.

The rout is on

Goals by Alec Martinez and Tyler Toffoli sent Carey Price to the bench after the Canadiens' goaltender had allowed four goals on 16 shots.

Peter Budaj was beaten by Jake Muzzin and Justin Williams.

The Canadiens were outshot 13-3.

Embarrassing.

Two good looks, two goals

Jordan Nolan had no one near him when the rebound of a Willie Mitchell found his stick to Carey Price's left.

And with seconds left in the period, Mike Richards found Anze Kopitar wide-open in the slot to make it 2-0.

The Canadiens outshot the Kings 17-12 – largely owing to a seven-shot power play.

Rare royal visit

The L.A. Kings haven't played a game in Montreal since Nov. 24, 2010.

They haven't won at the Bell Centre since Nov. 12, 1999.

So the Kings are due.

They're also tough. Like most of the good teams in the Western Conference, L.A. combines skill, speed, size and relentless physicality.

If Tuesday night's game turns into a rock 'em/sock 'em affair, the home team may be on the receiving end of rocks and socks.

L.A.'s 965 hits are third in the NHL (behind two Eastern Conference clubs, Toronto and Ottawa). The Canadiens, with 585 hits, are 26th.

Both teams play tight D. The Kings have not allowed more than two goals in 15 straight games and have gone10-1-4. The Canadiens have allowed more than two goals once in 14 games and are 11-1-2.

Other than Francis Bouillon drawing in for Douglas Murray, the Canadiens will go with the lineup that racked up their season-high fifth straight win Saturday over Buffalo. Alex Galchenyuk will play with Tomas Plekanec and Brian Gionta, and Lars Eller will centre Daniel Brière and Michaël Bournival.

The game will feature two of the best young defencemen in the league: P.K. Subban and L.A.'s Drew Doughty.

I don’t know what everyone else saw in this game but this is what I saw.

Habs had less Penalty’s, Habs had more shots, Habs had 0-Goals, LA had 6. You know why. LA had 18 players that could put the puck in the net and the Habs had 18 Players that couldn’t if you want to add anything else go for it. LA were the better team and deserved the 6 – 0 win …

Luca Sbisa could be a solid pickup from the ducks.
Low cap hit, Young and talented defenseman.
Could work well with Diaz and he won’t be as expensive as Kulikov
Leblanc,2nd or Bourque & Pick?
Thoughts?

I wish the habs had Williams or Brown on our team!

of course that game was terrible tonight but the habs will for sure come up with a better performance on Thursday

The Kings are the 2nd best team in the NHL (after Chicago). The Habs (and some fans) needed a wake-up call. This team is still missing some pieces and experience for the young players. The East is obviously not as good as the West.

What really worries me is the development of the D-men in Hamilton. As good as this D has been playing, I am not sure they are a long term Stanley Cup contending group. They were completely overwhelmed in front of the net tonight.

BTW playing Boullion instead of Murray tonight made absolutely no sense. Murray was signed to play against teams like this. The Kings had an easy night tonight.

Just watching the Therien Presser again……….he did say that they should leave the game in there behinds……..lol! Its got to make you tube to replace the rage and rant he had in Pittsburg…….”my players have no heart because they play with their behinds”!

If I can see something that is positive for the Canadiens, it would be Alex Galchenyuk. This kid, even though he sees this LA team out man them, he still made 3 SoG in the 1st period and is turning to be a good player. He’s on the right track but he can improve.

What I do agree with l’antichambre guys is Murray should have played tonight than Bouillon.

Wow the Florida-Detroit game part of the glass broke so they put cardboard over it and left it there for the rest of the game that’s such bs the bell center would burn down if that ever happened. Aaron Ward even took a shot at the NHL for their new deal haha and said pay for an extra piece of glass!

Man that sucks to think he is making that much coin, I guess he is laughing at us as much as we are laughing at him although NHL pension I believe is only like 12.5 k a year after you turn 45, and you get a one time payment of 250k at age 55 if you are credited with 400 dressed or available to dress games.

Oh well, time to regroup. My theory is that the NHL season is comprised of two-week-long swings. This recent one, while very successful, was physically demanding and it looks like it took a toll. The good news is that they are not overly beat up with significant injuries.

I suspect that the recent two week upswing will be followed by a similar duration downswing. Not because the team suddenly forgot how to play well or M.T. forgot how to coach but because all teams watch video and go to school on any opponent that goes on a winning streak like our Habs have recently done. Other teams (starting with L.A.) have figured out what Les Boys were doing right and came up with a game plan to counter it. Other teams will copy L.A. and will have success. Coaches as a rule, tend to be creatures of habit and don’t like to mess with success. Which is why they “stick with a winning lineup or encourage players to “play within the system”. Now the Canadiens coaching staff has to figure out a new plan. That new game plan will probably take a couple of weeks to work out the details. During that time the losses will grow along with frustration and then something will “click’ and they’ll go on a nice run where they string some more wins together.
Be patient and we will all see if this team is as good as we think it can be.

What scares me is that the same tactic Ottawa used last spring re-surfaced again tonight and Les Habs looked equally inepted, which is not good news going forward. When you think about it, it is actually extremely easy to beat this bunch by turning up the physical game. These guys just run and hide when that happens. I’m disappointed because tonite is not going to be the last time you’ll see these guys lose like this. When its all said and done they’ll be scrapping just to make the playoffs. Yes scrapping just to make it!

Did MT prepare his team? NO! In fact it was painfully obvious after the 1st period that he did not have a clue. He misjudged LA’s physicality and decided to play Frankie B instead of Murray. When it was clear he did not know what to do, he does the only thing he ever does which is change lines. However he can’t even remember which combinations actually work. Pathetic. Absolutely pathetic. Mark my words that this team will never be a winner with this guy at the helm. MB will eventually dump him. Hopefully we will not lose more than one or two seasons.

We outplayed them in the 1st period. That’s usually the sign of a well prepared team. The killer was coming out of it down 2-0. We didn’t cash our early chances and they did. Against a team like LA, that’s game right there. Unless you’re Chicago, and we ain’t.

I am no MT fan, but blaming him for this one is just wrong. Nobody could have coached the Habs to a win tonight. The players on the ice decided this one.

Man that sucks to think he is making that much coin, I guess he is laughing at us as much as we are laughing at him although NHL pension I believe is only like 12.5 k a year after you turn 45, and you get a one time payment of 250k at age 55 if you are credited with 400 dressed or available to dress games.

Perhaps just a reality check. They’ve been on a roll and it’s been fun to watch, but the best to hope for is a birth in the playoffs and a series win. Asking/hoping for more is gettin a bit unrealistic. So, hope they move on because a few consecutive losses will see us slide at least a few spots, maybe more.

PK is a great hockey player. For his short tenure in the NHL and on one of the most scrutinized teams by media in the league. Whatever he gets paid will also be scrutinized either way. Every game he plays in automatically gives us a chance to win. Period.

Oh Billylove – and if I had to pick between Crosby or Ovechkin – it doesn’t mean I wouldn’t keep either. The fact that you compare the two speaks volumes about how we agree on Subban’s talent level. In other words – keep him. He’s comparable to Doughty.

I think a loss like this is exactly what the doctor ordered. The team wasn’t playing great hockey in the last few games but they somehow managed to get the Ws. That train was bound to come to a stop. A blow out like this gets boys back to earth and is a much needed reality check. I am confident that they’ll be playing one of the best games of the season next Thursday!

So their goalie was great,the shots were nearly even,Price was interfered with twice,yes they are a lot bigger than us and it did show.We didn’t play our best game and certainly not our worst,we actually won our worst game.Iit’s one game not the end of the world,do think he should have played Murray, another game thurs to look forward to,fired up after that loss.
GO HABS GO

We got smoked by a better hockey team tonight. Part of the process. I’m not worried. But I do hope we bounce back against Philly because we are definitely better than them. Can’t let this be the start of another regression.

i think some of here need a new perspective…….PK is a good D but not as great as some see him to be……great skater >I do think he has slowed down since he bulked up………relies to much on his shot and it has now become predictable……average puck handler……very good in his own end if he wants to be……..he may make the Canada team but little playing minutes I am predicting! If I were a GM I would want to pay him 4 to 5 million (that’s what I think he’s worth) Given its a competitive market you need to pay him between 6 and 7 if you want to keep him in Montreal!